- wax
- 1. A thick, tenacious substance, plastic at room temperature, secreted by bees for building the cells of their honeycomb. SYN: beeswax, cera. 2. Any substance with physical properties similar to those of beeswax, of animal, vegetable, or mineral origin (oils, lipids, or fats that are solids at room temperature). 3. Esters of high molecular weight fatty acid s with monohydric or dihydric alcohols (aliphatic or cyclic), that are solid at room temperature. Often accompanied by free fatty acid s. [A.S. weax]- bleached w. SYN: white w..- bone w. a mixture of antiseptic agents, oil, and w. used to stop bleeding by plugging bone cavities or haversian canals. SYN: Horsley bone w..- Brazil w. SYN: carnauba w..- carnauba w. a w. obtained from the Brazilian w. palm, Copernica cerifera; used in pharmaceuticals to coat medicaments in sustained release preparations and surfaces of tablets; used in waxes for wood and metal. SYN: Brazil w., palm w..- casting w. any soft solid w. used in dentistry for patterns of all types and for many other purposes; most are basically paraffin but are modified by addition of gum dammar, carnauba w., or other ingredients, to meet various requirements. SYN: inlay w..- Chinese w. 1. a vegetable w.; 2. a w. secreted by a scale insect, Coccus ceriferus or C. pela, and deposited in the twigs of a species of ash tree; used in China to make candles and also medicinally.- ear w. SYN: cerumen.- emulsifying w. a washable ointment base consisting of a mixture of cetostearyl alcohol, sodium lauryl sulfate, and water.- Japan w. a vegetable w. derived from Rhus succedanea and Toxicodendron verniciferum.- mineral w. 1. SYN: paraffin w.. 2. SYN: ceresin. 3. a mineral substance whose physical properties are similar to w..- palm w. SYN: carnauba w..- white w. yellow w. bleached by being rolled very thin and exposed to the light and air, or bleached by chemical oxidants; same uses as yellow w.. SYN: bleached w., white beeswax.- wool w. SYN: adeps lanae.- yellow w. a yellowish, solid, brittle substance prepared from the honeycomb of the bee, Apis mellifera; the chief constituent is myricin (myricyl palmitate); others are cerotic acid (cerin), melissic acid, heptacosane, and hentriacontane; used in the preparation of ointments, cerates, plasters, and suppositories.
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wax 'waks n1) a substance that is secreted by bees and is used by them for constructing the honeycomb, that is a dull yellow solid plastic when warm, and that is composed of a mixture of esters, cerotic acid, and hydrocarbons called also beeswax2) any of various substances resembling beeswax: asa) any of numerous substances of plant or animal origin that differ from fats in being less greasy, harder, and more brittle and in containing principally compounds of high molecular weight (as fatty acids, alcohols, and saturated hydrocarbons)b) a pliable or liquid composition used esp. in uniting surfaces, excluding air, making patterns or impressions, or producing a polished surface <dental \waxes>* * *
(waks) [L. cera] a low-melting, high-molecular-weight, organic mixture or compound, similar to fats and oils but lacking glycerides; it may be deposited by insects, obtained from plants, or prepared synthetically. Most are esters of fatty acids and alcohols, with some hydrocarbons. The wax of pharmacy is principally yellow w. and its bleached form white w.
Medical dictionary. 2011.
